10 tips for trustees
30 September | Zerlinda van der Merwe
If you've listened to me often enough, you will know that I serve as a trustee in a professional and personal capacity. And, wow, what a difference it is in each role as each scheme is so unique, and has a different set of needs.
As a trustee of my home and investment, my knowledge is sometimes pushed aside by my personal opinions on matters. I may object more vehemently to a special levy being raised, or be biased towards a defaulting owner because I know them personally/have had a bad experience with them in the past. Although, as trustees, we must always keep our owner and trustee hats separate, it is most certainly easier to do this when it is not YOUR home or YOUR investment, or even one of someone close to you, such as a partner or parent. Due to this reason, I have put together the below 10 top trustee tips that have certainly made my life easier as a trustee, and I hope you find them just as useful:
Read the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act 8 of 2011, as well as the amended management and conduct rules of the body corporate, if any. If there are none, consider putting together a set of rules suitable to your scheme, or contact us for assistance.
Prepare for trustee meetings. Read the minutes of the last meeting, the financials and other reports, list and ask your questions, and understand the answers.
Attend trustee meetings. Remember that you made yourself available or accepted that nomination, so now you have to act. Should you not be able to attend a trustee meeting, remember to excuse yourself with the chairperson, with the reason for your absence. Make an effort to contribute before and after the trustee meeting regarding matters planned to be discussed, and dealt with, at the meeting.
Attend to action items. If you have been tasked with, or have offered to attend to an item of business, attend to it timelessly, and definitely prior to the next meeting. Don't be afraid to say no if you do not have the capacity at that point in time, but make up for it when you do.
Don't meet just for the sake of it. Meet when there is a need to. Remember, it's no fun for the managing agent to simply regurgitate the minutes of the last trustee meeting each time, noting that there is no prescribed number of meetings to be held, or trustee meetings at all.
Listen to and engage with the members. All the members. Even that one owner. We all know this owner! See the tip below regarding an email address.
Appoint a managing agent. Full stop.
Set up a separate email address for body corporate matters or trustee portfolios. Do not let your body corporate business get lost in between work emails, junk emails, and definitely not in WhatsApp messages!
Allocate portfolios. Determine what skills your body corporate needs and ensure that the committee have these skills to offer, examples are financial, legal, security, communication, architectural or engineering etc.
Set an example to your members. Pay your contributions and comply with the rules of the body corporate.
To all the current trustees, and budding trustees out there, good luck, it's a tough "job"!
If you are looking for professional trustee services or would like to contact us, you can at TVDM Consultants on info@tvdmconsultants.com or 061 536 3138.
If you would like an executive managing agent you can contact Michael Schaefer from ZDfin.
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